When friends and family walk through your front yard around holiday time, you want them to truly feel the holiday spirit. There is something inspiring and uplifting about a beautiful outdoor holiday display. Whether the scene is beautiful, amusing, or interactive, you can create a magical space in your front yard with outdoor Christmas decorations. The question is how to transform your yard from a cluster of decorations into a truly magical experience. And we know all the tricks.
Achieve an enchanted outdoor space by turning each decoration into part of the whole experience. Build a scene, light it to accentuate your decorations, and make the scene feel more real. Design your decorations to flow from the front walk to the front door. You can even design an interactive holiday display for children and friends to play in while they enjoy the holiday spirit.
Let's dive into the best ways to turn your outdoor Christmas decorations into a magical display.
Envision the Scene You Want to Create
Start by building the magic in your mind. For example, are you creating a colorful gingerbread house experience where guests walk down a path of candy-colored lights or a winter wonderland of icy blue and silver beauty? Will your scene inspire the magic of Santa Claus and the reindeer, the ancient yule, or the mysterious winter? Will your yard make visitors feel joy, awe, or misty-eyed nostalgia?
Once you choose your ambiance and theme, decide what decorations you will use. Maybe you have a few favorite outdoor Christmas decorations you use every year. Often, we look for a few new pieces of holiday decor to make each year's display special and one-of-a-kind.
Visualize the scene you want to build using outdoor decorations and the feeling you wish to evoke.
Incorporate Your Outdoor Features
Every aspect of your front yard can become part of the Christmas scene. Every railing, every bush, and every tree can build the scene that you want to create. In fact, the more you incorporate the layers and features of your yard, the more immersive and magical your display can become. So build an experience from the walk to the front door, using every part of your yard as a detail in the display.
From the Front Walk
Your magical space starts at the front walk. Passers-by, neighbors, and local drivers will admire your outdoor decorations from that vantage. Visitors, friends, and family will start their trek through your magical experience from the front walk or driveway. So begin your decorations there. Front bushes, flower beds, and fences alike can be adorned with outdoor Christmas lights that frame your holiday scene. Line your front walk with delightful holiday lights.
Your Porch and Railings
Your porch frames the other edge of your scene and beckons visitors into the warmth of your decorated home. You can wind lights around porch railings and up the columns. You can also turn the front of your home into its own little scene with large-sized Christmas decorations on the porch or perched on the balcony railing.
Trees and Bushes
The natural elements of your yard are a wonderful way to make your scene more magical. Drape lights from the trees and wrap your bushes in light nets. Or you can light your greenery from below to illuminate decorations of elves hiding under bushes or snowflakes hanging from the trees.
The Roof and Eaves
Everyone loves roof lights and decorations around the holidays. Your roof lights, however, can be used to accent and frame your outdoor decorative scene. Choose the right lights and effects for your roof and hang icicles or dangling presents from the eaves.
Planters and Flower Beds
Planters are a wonderful way to decorate. You can place elves hiding in the planters or light the inside of your planters to create unusual sources of magical glow. Line your flower beds with rocks that look like candies and hide 'presents' in the bushes and boughs.
To the Front Door
Finally, make your front door into a beckoning portal, turning the magic of your outdoor decorations into a feeling of hope and joy entering the house. Line your front door in lights and hang something festive, whether that's a wreath, a friendly elf, or a door sculpture with more personal meaning.
Build a Scene of Outdoor Decorations
Making your outdoor holiday decorations into an enchanted scene instead of a mish-mash is all about planning. First, design an entire set using your space carefully to create layers of experience and wonder as friends and family approach the front walk.
Define Your Space
Outline where you will place the majority of your decorations. Identify any secondary spaces like side yards, a smaller half of the yard, or landscaped areas. Define the spaces where you want to place decorations and where guests can walk through your experience.
Place Large Decorations as Landmarks
Start with your most prominent decorations. These define your space and will act as landmarks for the rest of your plan. If you have a large red sleigh, for example, its location would determine where you place the reindeer and presents in the design.
Add the Rich Details
With your large decorations placed, fill out the rest of your design from the small outdoor decorations to the string lights and icicles. Then, make your design rich with detail or elegant simplicity by choosing your smaller, accent decorations carefully.
Magical Lighting and Effects
Finally, let's talk about lighting. The way to transform a scene of decorations into a magical space is with lights. The proper illumination can make a place seem ethereal, otherworldly, or full of magical Christmas cheer.
Winding String Lights & Draping Fairy Lights
Frame your scene in string lights on the eves, railings, and fences around your front yard. Use your string lights to define the perimeter. Then make the interior of your design more enchanting with lights that hang and drape into place. Fairy lights and sparkling lights can also enhance the ambiance of your design.
Upshot Lights Create a Magical Ambiance
You can make a house appear to glow by illuminating the walls with lights affixed within the flower beds. You can use similar tricks to light up your entire display from ground angles or even lights hiding in your trees and eaves.
Project a Festive Holiday Light Show
Several outdoor holiday projectors can make your entire house feel more magical with a colorful light show. From blue snowflakes to colorful candy patterns, an outdoor projector can turn your wall and even the decorations themselves into a canvas of illuminated holiday cheer.
Fog Machines and Misty Light
Want to create a truly magical walk through your decorations? Cue the fog machine. Combine ambient and ground lighting with a gentle fog during special events and holiday nights. Create an ethereal glow around your decorations that ties the entire experience together.
Carry the Magical Experience Inside
The best way to finish a magical outdoor experience is to beckon your visitors inside the house for more holiday cheer. A beautiful front porch can lead through a welcoming doorway into a warmly lit entryway. From there, your interior holiday decorating will continue the magic for guests and family alike. Matching your indoor and outdoor themes or creating a transition space in the front hall are both wonderful ways to continue the magic indoors.
Looking for more ways to make your home feel magical around the holidays? Explore the Christmas Palace for an exploration of holiday decorations, from outdoor displays to model train sets. Contact us to discuss your vision for a magical outdoor decoration display.
